


I Don't Like Most People

by JoMo3



Series: Strange Conversations [7]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-17
Updated: 2017-04-17
Packaged: 2018-10-19 21:32:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10648467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoMo3/pseuds/JoMo3
Summary: A Jancy story.





	I Don't Like Most People

**Author's Note:**

> So...this is a little different from my other Conversations, in that it focuses entirely on Jonathan and Nancy. I hope it's not too bad.

_ Don't take it so personally, okay? I don't like most people. He's in the vast majority.  _

 

It was another Saturday night at the Byers home. 

Jonathan and Will sat on the couch, watching Freddie Krueger terrorize his victims when Joyce came into the room, shaking her head. 

“Jonathan, I told you, Will can't watch these movies so late,” she said. It was a little past ten o'clock. 

“Mom, it's okay,” Will said. “I won't have nightmares. I promise.”

“That's what you told me last week,” she said. “And remember what happened?” she added, referring to him running into her room. 

“Five more minutes, mom. It's almost over,” Jonathan said. 

Joyce sighed. “If he wakes up screaming,  _ you _ are going to have to calm him down,” she said. She went into the kitchen to get water. 

Jonathan ruffled his little brother’s hair. “You're not going to wake me up, are you?”

“No,” Will said, batting Jonathan's hand away. 

The phone rang, and Joyce went to go answer it. 

“I wonder who it is,” Jonathan thought out loud. “It's a little late.”

Joyce shuffled back into the room, looking at her oldest son. “It's for you,” she told him. 

Jonathan looked confused. “Who is it?”

“It's Nancy Wheeler.”

 

Jonathan picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

“Jonathan, hey,” came the voice of Nancy Wheeler. 

“Is something wrong?”

“Um, well, kind of,” was the response. “I don't suppose you know how to fix a flat tire?”

“Yeah, actually, I do. What's going on, Nancy?”

She sighed. “I was at this party and on my way home I got a flat. Luckily there was a pay phone nearby. Can you help me?”

“Yeah, okay. Where are you?”

She gave him the location; it was a little farther than he hoped it'd be. Making sure he had the proper tools in his trunk, he got in his car and drove.

 

He and Nancy hadn't talked too much in the past year. Sure, there was the occasional “hi” or polite smile in the hallway at school, but besides those and the time everyone came together to welcome back Eleven, they hadn't really talked.

Making a turn, he thought about the feelings he'd had (and still kind of had) for her when they were “monster hunting.” He'd debated, when Will was back and their hunting days were over, telling her how he felt. But then she'd gotten back with Steve, and the moment had passed. 

 

A little bit later he found her on the side of the road, looking nervous, but relieved when she saw him.

“Hey,” she called as he got out of his car.

“Hey,” he replied, popping his trunk. “So what happened?”

Shaking her head, she told him “I was driving home and I heard a pop. Next thing I know, my car is swerving, so I pulled over.”

“Hm.” Getting what he needed from the trunk, he walked to the driver’s side front tire and knelt down. Loosening the tire, he looked up at her. “Why didn’t you call Steve?”

Folding her arms, she said “He’s...he’s out of town.”

“Oh. Where was the party?”

“Like, a half hour away. It was a friend of a friend, and I was miserable, so I left. I told my parents I was going to study with someone. I couldn’t call them.”

“Hm.” Jonathan pulled the tire off.

“Thank you, so much, for coming out here to help.”

Jonathan grinned. “What are friends for, right?”

Carrying the flat tire, he walked to her trunk, which she opened for him. She lugged out the spare, while he put the flat one in her trunk.

“Your dad never showed you how to do this?” Jonathan asked.

“He did,” she replied as he bent down to start putting on the new tire. “But it was, like, a long time ago. Do you need any help?”

“No, I’ve got it,” he said as he lined up the spare.

Nancy paced for a minute, then asked “Do you know what time it is?”

Jonathan shrugged. “I don’t know, probably 10:30?”

“Shit,” she said under her breath. Grinning, Jonathan looked up at her.

“What is it?”

“My curfew is 11. I’m gonna be in so much trouble…”

“You might be a couple of minutes late, but it won’t be too bad.”

Nancy shook her head. “My mom...since last year, she’s been on me even more about where I’m going, who I’m with…”

“There,” Jonathan said, standing up. “All done.”

“Thank you so much,” Nancy said, coming over and giving Jonathan a hug. “You have no idea how much this helps me.”

“It’s no problem.”

“No, really,” she said, looking up at him. “I owe you.”

“You don’t,” Jonathan said, gathering his stuff. “It’s okay.”

“Well...can you follow me home? In case there’s another problem?”

“Um...okay, sure.”

Giving him a smile, she got back into her car. A minute later, Jonath got into his as well, and the two headed back towards Hawkins.

 

The next morning, Jonathan was woken up by his mother, earlier than he would’ve liked.

“Phone for you,” she told him as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

“What?”

“It’s Nancy again,” Joyce said. “What happened with you two last night?”

“Nothing, mom,” he said, getting out of bed. Walking into the kitchen, he saw Will sitting at the table, drawing. “No nightmares?” Jonathan asked.

“Nope,” Will said, smiling.

Jonathan picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

“Hey, Jonathan,” Nancy said, “Did you, uh...do you want to get breakfast with me?”

“Um…” he started, not knowing what to say. Of course he wanted to meet her, but he also didn’t know if she was doing this in an attempt to pay him back.

“Come on, it’s just breakfast,” she said. 

“Fine, okay. Um, where at?”

“Benny’s?”

“Alright.I’ll see you there” Hanging up the phone, he thought to himself...was this a date? Then, smiling, shook his head. She was with Steve.

 

Since Benny’s death, his sister, Rosie, had taken over the burger establishment. Unbeknownst to many, the place served much more than burgers, and if you got there early enough, Rosie cooked great pancakes.

When Jonathan arrived, Nancy was already seated, with a glass of apple juice in front of her. She gave him a smile as he sat across from her.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey. Thanks for meeting me. I figured it was the least I could do for you helping me last night.”

Jonathan grinned. “So this  _ is _ so you can pay me back.”

“I know, you didn’t want anything,” she said, “But just...let me buy you breakfast. Please?”

Reluctantly, he nodded his head. “Okay.”

Rosie came and took their orders, then the two teens caught up with each other. They discussed how their classes were going, what schools they were looking at for college-him NYU, her Indiana University-and how their younger siblings had coped over the past year.

After a few minutes, Jonathan asked “I’m guessing you didn’t get in trouble last night?”

Shaking her head and smiling, she told him “No, my mom wasn’t even awake. My dad, either. Mike was, talking on his walkie to his girlfriend.”

“So they’re finally official, huh?” Jonathan asked.

Nancy smiled and nodded. “Took them long enough,right?” Shifting in her seat, she admitted “So, there’s another reason I asked you to breakfast.”

Jonathan raised his eyebrows. “Uh...okay.”

She sighed. “I wasn’t entirely honest with you last night.”

Rosie came by, and dropped off their breakfast plates. As she left, Jonathan asked, “What do you mean?”

“You asked me why I didn’t call Steve, remember?”

“Yeah, you said he was out of town.”

“Yeah, that. Um, we broke up.”

Jonathan was surprised. “What happened?”

“He cheated on me, with Jody Fisher.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

“And when I got a flat last night, the only person I could think to call,” she said, her eyes meeting his. “Was you.”

Jonathan gulped. “Oh. Um, thanks, I guess.”

She smiled shyly. “I was thinking...you know, maybe we….”

“Nancy,” he said, stopping her.

She looked surprised. “Yes?”

Jonathan sighed, not knowing how to handle this. On one hand, this is exactly what he wanted-a date, or the possibility of dating Nancy. On the other hand, he didn’t want to rush into things.

“We...shouldn’t,” he said.

Nancy looked hurt. “Really?”

Jonathan looked at the table. “Yeah.”

Shaking her head, Nancy reached into her purse, and angrily tossed some dollars onto the table. “I can’t believe this,” she muttered, getting up and storming out of the diner.

Jonathan sprang from his seat and went after her. She was getting into her car when he grabbed the door, preventing her from closing it.

“I can’t believe,” she said, looking up at him with angry, tearful, eyes, “I can’t believe that it’s just now dawning on me what a jerk you are.”

“Nancy…”

“Here I am, making a fool of myself, and you…”

“Nancy…”

  
“I thought that you liked…” she trailed off, shaking her head.

“Nancy…”

“ _ What _ ?” she asked.

“I do like you,” he said, sighing.

“You do?”

“Yeah,” he said, nodding. “But...you  _ just _ broke up with Steve. And….as much as I want something to, you know... _ happen _ between us...I don’t want to rush anything.”

She sighed, and leaned back into her seat. After taking a moment to collect herself, she looked up at him with a small smile. “You’re a good guy, Jonathan Byers.”

He smiled back at her. “I have my moments.”

He backed up, and she stepped out of the car. “You do like me?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know, you did just call me a jerk.”

Smiling, she punched his shoulder. Laughing, he grabbed his arm.

“Shut up,” she said with a grin.

“Come on, let me buy you breakfast,” Jonathan said, nodding back towards Benny’s.

“Alright,” she said, smiling.

The two walked side by side into the diner, wondering what the future held for them.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thanks for reading. If you liked it, feel free to comment or kudos.


End file.
